abscissa

[ ab-sis-uh ]

/ æbˈsɪs ə /

noun, plural ab·scis·sas, ab·scis·sae [ab-sis-ee] /æbˈsɪs i/. Mathematics.

(in plane Cartesian coordinates) the x-coordinate of a point: its distance from the y-axis measured parallel to the x-axis.

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Commas mark divisions in sentences. Periods end declarative sentences. Apostrophes show possession. Easy, right? Well, punctuation can get pretty tricky—fast. Think you got what it takes to be a punctuation expert? Take our quiz to prove it!

Question 1 of 10

Which of the options below is the best punctuation for the sentence? It__s your turn to pick the movie __ but your sister gets to pick the board game we _ re going to play.

Its your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game were going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie, but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

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Compare ordinate.

Origin of abscissa

1690–1700; feminine of Latin abscissus (past participle of abscindere to abscind)

Words nearby abscissa

abscam, abscess, abscind, abscise, abscisic acid, abscissa, abscission, abscission layer, abscission zone, abscond, abscondee

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for abscissa

Abscissa represents duration of exposure and quantity of incident light.
Life Movements in Plants, Volume II, 1919|Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose
Curves have been prepared having pressure as an abscissa and elasticity as ordinate.
Paint Technology and Tests|Henry A. Gardner
The ordinate of the curve represents the intensity of response, and the abscissa the time (fig. 1).
Response in the Living and Non-Living|Jagadis Chunder Bose
The curve then crosses the abscissa upwards, and the positive curvature reaches a maximum.
Life Movements in Plants, Volume II, 1919|Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose

As the temperature is made to rise one degree per minute, the abscissa also represents rise of temperature (Fig. 66).
Life Movements in Plants|Sir Jagadis Chunder Bose

British Dictionary definitions for abscissa

abscissa

/ (æbˈsɪsə) /

noun plural -scissas or -scissae (-ˈsɪsiː)

the horizontal or x -coordinate of a point in a two-dimensional system of Cartesian coordinates. It is the distance from the y -axis measured parallel to the x -axisCompare ordinate

Word Origin for abscissa

C17: New Latin, originally linea abscissa a cut-off line

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for abscissa

abscissa

[ ăb-sĭs′ə ]

Plural abscissas abscissae (ăb-sĭs′ē)

The distance of a point from the y-axis on a graph in the Cartesian coordinate system. It is measured parallel to the x-axis. For example, a point having coordinates (2,3) has 2 as its abscissa. Compare ordinate.